German painter and artist Albrecht Durer (1471-1528) is ranked as one of history's master printmakers, perhaps the most technically skilled in Western art. During his time, his etchings, engravings and woodcuts were emulated and glorified, and owned by kings. To help prevent his works from being counterfeited or plagiarized, Durer made his prints so detailed … Continue reading 15th century counterfeit protection
Month: January 2013
Tempera paintings
Tempera, often called egg tempera, is an ancient type of paint and painting that pre-dated oil paint in popularity. Many ancient Egyptian and Western Medieval paintings were tempera, and the paintings of Michelangelo and Botticelli are tempera. Tempera was the most popular form of painting until the 1500s, when it was replaced by oil paint. … Continue reading Tempera paintings
Milk glass photograph
Many are surprised when they learn that many 1800s photographs were not paper, but glass and metal. The pictured 1800s opalotype has the image on milky white glass and has a foil frame. Opalotypes were sometimes hand tinted or colored.
Dali’s bomb prints
Salvador Dali made prints printed from metal printing plates prepared in creative ways. To help create the design for one printing plate, he blew up a home made bomb in front of it.
How do you know if one of those big John James Audubon bird prints is original?
The wildly popular large Audubon "Birds of America" prints were originally printed in the 1820s-30s, and have been reprinted many times since, including as everyday posters. Luckily for collectors, identifying the original large prints are surprisingly easy if you know what to look for. An original large 1820s-30s Audubon "Birds of America" print should have … Continue reading How do you know if one of those big John James Audubon bird prints is original?
Authentic coloring?
1800s Harper's Woodcuts, or woodcuts prints from the magazine Harper's Weekly, are popularly collected today. The images show nineteenth century life, including stage actors, sports, US Presidents, war, high society, nature and street life. Though originally black and white, some of the prints have been hand colored over the years. As age is important to … Continue reading Authentic coloring?
A very basic guide to identifying ceramics
Ceramics (cups, bowls plates, jugs, figures, etc) are divided into three major categories: stoneware, earthenware and porcelain. This post is a very quick identification to which of the three is that figurine in the antique store, bowl in the estate stale, or coffee cup your kitchen cabinet. It is usually easy to make an identification, … Continue reading A very basic guide to identifying ceramics
Identifying reproduction paintings
Many paintings have been reproduced. Reproductions range from the blatantly obvious to the more deceptive. I assume I don't have to explain to you that the Mona Lisa on your umbrella isn't the original. However reproductions can be more realistic, can be on canvas, framed and even with fake brush strokes. A number of well … Continue reading Identifying reproduction paintings
Manipulative gum companies and a famously rare baseball card
Though its value has fallen a bit in recent years, the pictured 1933 Goudey #106 Napoleon Lajoie has traditionally been one of the most coveted baseball cards due to its rarity. It was produced during the American depression as part of a colorful 240 card set by The Goudey Gum Company, a Boston manufacturer of … Continue reading Manipulative gum companies and a famously rare baseball card
Presenting old art ‘authentically’
Similar to the problem with translating poetry is the problem in trying to present old works of arts in modern times.Many wish to present a Shakespeare play or Verdi Opera the way it was originally presented, and there are complaints about colorizing old black and white movies.Advocates of original presentation often refer to a work … Continue reading Presenting old art ‘authentically’
Looking at Artifacts and Ideas 